Chapter four

Nicole had been awake for almost an hour now listening to her new roommate going on and on about the college. Ava, as she had introduced herself was your traditional white girl, long blonde hair that flowed in waves down her back, sparkling blue eyes, slender body and a petite waist. She had woken Nicole up around 4 in the afternoon to meet her, introduce herself and lecture her about not miss out on freshmen week even though it was still day one. Thankfully though that allowed her to finally video call her mother and sister and fill them in on the day's events, mostly leaving out anything that had to do with Mr. Wilson and his moody fiancé. Last thing she wanted was for her mom to jump to conclusion and think she was already attracting older men on her first day there.

" Oh, by the way you have to try out for the cheerleading squad with me. Not only will it give us exclusive excess to a bunch of stuff, but we will also get invited to the best parties and it will pave a legacy for our daughters when we send them here in the future."

Fully taking Ava in, Nicole couldn't understand how someone could have that much energy, especially since they had just met not less than an hour ago.

"Umm I can't try out of cheerleading. I'll be doing ballet here at the college. That's how I got this scholarship."

"Nicole come on, don't tell me you're when of those girls. If ballet really is that important then just do both. It will be easy for you anyways since you already have a dancer's body."

Trying to be polite and not scare her newfound company away Nicole new she had to give her a response that would satisfy her for the time being until she could figure out a way around it.

"I'll think about it then,"

Nicole knew she probably wouldn't join cheerleading, not that there was anything bad about the sport but the way it had been perceived in movies and on social media, she preferred to not surround herself with something that will downgrade how people see her and one that will leave her questioning her morals. Ballet on the other hand was graceful, elegant and very much matched with who she was as a person and her morals, besides she just didn't have the heart for cheerleading.

Pulling out her cellphone she realized that Charlotte had followed her back on Instagram and had even dmed her.

Downstairs, by the old statue in 10 minutes. Let's go grab a bite and show you around town.

Smiling slightly, she responded with a thumbs up and pocketed her phone before turning back to Ava,

" Girl no, what is that?"

Confused Nicole looked at her pocket and back at Ava.

"My phone..."

"Yeah, I know it's your phone but where is the apple at the back? What brand is that?"

Feeling slightly embarrassed she shuffles her feet and tugged at her braids.

" It's a Samsung. I know it's in a bit of a rough state but that's only because I keep in dropping it like every other second of the day."

Saying nothing Ava simply pressed her lips together in a thin line before looking at her wristwatch. Apple of course, no wonder she was so quick to judge my phone, Nicole thought to herself.

Noting Nicole's displeasure on her face, Ava decided to change the topic to something else, trying to avoid offending her new friend as much as possible, even though she couldn't help but grimace at the thought of Nicole's phone once again.

"Anyways let's head to the cafeteria for a bite, I can fill you in on our lovely little town and what it has to offer."

Wanting a bit of space from Ava after their little moment Nicole moved towards their little dorm door, opening it slightly before turning back to Ava who had already started following her out the door.

"Actually, I'm meeting a friend of mine for lunch, I'll see you when I get back."

Noting the look of disappointment on Ava's face, she simply shrugged it off, reminding herself of how rude Ava had been regarding her phone. At the end of the day, it was just a phone so why did it matter so much to her roommate which brand it was. Besides it's not like they were friends or anything, they had just met today. Offering Ava one last apologetic smile, which was obvious wasn't sincere at all, she walked out the door and closed it, taking a deep breath in and making her way down the stairs to find Charlotte.

*****

"Oh my god this is delicious, what is it?"

"Lol I know right? It's called a schnitzel and is pretty popular around here."

"I can see why, it's amazing."

Realizing that Charlotte had a good eye or rather taste buds for amazing food around campus Nicole knew immediately that they would get along quite well. There is nothing she liked more than befriending people who shared her love of food. Being friends with other foodies when you are a foodie just made perfect sense.

" What do you call this again? Stchi.. schni..."

" Careful, don't bite your tongue there love trying to pronounce it, it's called a schnitzel in German but for you non-German speakers you can just call it a cutlet."

"Well then, this cutlet is amazing, I think I'll get another one to go."

Laughing out Charlotte embraced Nicole, grateful that she had followed her instincts today and tried befriending her. She just didn't know why but something was pushing her towards this girl, and she was eager to find out why.

" Go right ahead darling, I'm not here to judge. Besides you are in varsity now and free of parents and strict fixed meals. You my friend, can eat whatever you want, whenever you want, and nobody will ever tell you otherwise."

"Well then in that case I hereby deem this dish as my favorite dish here."

"Cheers to that. You know it was my favorite dish when I moved here too. Glad to say that hasn't changed one bit."

"Wait what. You are not from around here?"

Tilting her head back Nicole took in Charlotte one more time. She definitely sounded like she was from around here. Thinking back on the way Mr. Wilson spoke to her the accents definitely sounded the same.

"Lol no darling I'm not. I moved here when I was 15. Quite a young age huh."

"Wow and your parents?"

"I aahh.. didn't move here with them, just me."

Noting the change of tone in Charlottes' voice, she decided not to press further, for now, and instead chose to let it slide and change the topic.

"Anyways, let's take my takeout and head back to campus, I'm still tired from all that traveling today."

"Sure thing. Lets' go."

*****

The rest of the way back to campus was filled with nothing but laughter as the two girls shared stories of what they had imagined their life would be like once they reached the age they were at. Once reaching the campus gates they shared their goodbyes and goodnights before retreating back to their dorms. Nicole had been surprised to learn that Charlotte actually stayed of campus at some 'sorority house' as she had put it before leaving for the night. Charlotte didn't seem like a sorority type of girl to Nicole but either way she didn't know much about her. Returning back to her dorm room Nicole smiled to herself and thanked god that she had made it through the first day and actually met someone she could call a friend. Opening her dorm door, she smiled to herself once again and found herself eagerly waiting to see what tomorrow had in store for her,